The Mighty Quinns: Riley (11 page)

“Pretty ghastly,” he said. “Isn't that something an old lady would wear?”

“No, I'd frame it. I love maps.”

“Then buy a real map. There's a great bookshop in Ennis that sells antique maps. I can take you there.”

“Will we have time before I leave?” Nan asked.

Riley cursed beneath his breath. “Do we always have to be talking about you going home?”

“I want to find the perfect memory,” she said. “I'm going to go in and look at it. Maybe they have some others.”

“I'll wait out here,” he said.

“You don't want to come with me?”

“I'm not a big one for browsing for ladies' things,” he said. “Unless, of course, you're shopping for lingerie. Then I'd be happy to be of assistance.”

Nan laughed. “There's a pub across the street. Go get yourself a half-pint and I'll join you when I'm done.”

“You won't be long?”

“Fifteen minutes at the most. And then we'll go to the gardens.”

She watched as Riley started off across the street, then turned and entered the small shop. A bell rang above her head as she opened the door and the shopkeeper smiled at her from behind a small counter.

“Hello, there,” the shopkeeper said. “It's a lovely day outside, isn't it?”

“Yes,” Nan said. “Perfect.”

“Is there anything I can help you find, then?”

“I noticed the scarf in the window,” Nan said. “Do you have any others like it?”

“Oh, yes. Several,” she said, pointing into the display case. “These are one-of-a-kind, you know. Hand-painted by a local artist. Let me show you.”

As she looked through the scarves, Nan realized nothing she could buy would ever be perfect because they were only reminders of the land and scenery. Her most vivid memory of Ireland would always be Riley. Maybe she needed to buy something to create that one perfect memory of him.

“Do you carry lingerie?” she asked.

“I'm afraid we don't. We have some dressing gowns.”

“Is there any place in town that has lingerie?”

“Burkes,” she said. “They're a larger department store just around the corner.”

Nan thanked the shopkeeper, then hurried back outside, glancing at her watch. She had ten minutes left before she'd agreed to meet Riley at the pub. She could run in and out and come away with something sexy.

Burkes was a large store with a beautiful red facade
of arched display windows. She hurried inside, then asked for directions to the lingerie department. But along the way, a pretty pale green cotton dress caught her eye. It had a deeply cut neck and back and a long, flowing skirt. Hand-crocheted lace decorated the neckline.

She wouldn't be able to wear a bra with it, which made it all the more provocative, and yet it wasn't too revealing. It was feminine and sexy, exactly the kind of thing she needed to wear to Riley's show. The kind of dress that would make him forget all the other women in the room and focus entirely on her.

“Can I try this on?” Nan asked, the lingerie forgotten.

“The dressing rooms are in the rear,” the clerk said. “I'll be back to check on you in a moment.”

After she closed the door behind her, Nan stripped out of her clothes and bra and pulled the dress over her head. The gauzy material was soft on her skin and clung to all her curves. The skirt came down to midcalf and yet was slit up to the thigh on one side.

“Perfect,” she murmured, smiling at her reflection in the mirror. Nan spun around then examined the low back on the dress. Though she'd never gone out in public without a bra, there was no reason not to feel comfortable in the dress.

Facing the mirror, she examined her breasts and came away pleased with the overall impression. There were a few benefits to being slightly flat-chested.

Nan reached beneath the skirt and skimmed off her panties, then smiled. She could wear the dress with
nothing underneath, she mused. Riley would probably enjoy that even more. She ran her fingers through her hair. Maybe a pretty thong would be better.

Nan winced. She'd never worn a thong in her life. They'd always looked so uncomfortable. And a bit too racy for her tastes. A knock sounded on the door. “Is there anything else I can get for you?” the salesclerk asked.

Nan poked her head out the door. “I need lingerie. Panties. Maybe a thong? Something lacy. White, I think.”

A few minutes later, another knock sounded on the door and she opened it, only to find Riley standing outside. “Let me in,” he whispered, a devilish grin on his face.

“No! You can't come in here.”

“There's no one around. Come on, let me in.”

“How did you find me?”

“I saw you from across the street. What's taking you so long?”

“Go away,” she said. The salesclerk would be returning in a few minutes with her lingerie and any attempt at surprising him would be gone. Nan closed the door, but he knocked again. Frustrated, she let him in.

“Sit,” she murmured. “And pull your feet up.”

Riley did as he was told, wrapping his arms around his legs. “Pretty dress,” he commented. “Are you wearing underwear?” He reached for the hem and peered beneath her skirt, but she slapped his hand away.

“Are you stark naked underneath that dress?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, Jaysus, I shouldn't have come in here.”

A third knock sounded at the door and Nan shushed him. She opened the door a crack and took the handful of hangers from the clerk. “Thanks,” she murmured. “I'll be out in a few minutes.”

“Oh, take all the time you need,” the clerk said, as if she knew what was going on inside the room.

When she shut the door, Nan could feel her cheeks flushed from embarrassment.

“Oh, now, what's this?” Riley asked, pointing to the thongs.

“Stop,” Nan said. “I just needed something to wear for tomorrow night. I didn't bring along anything pretty. I don't really own anything pretty.” She smoothed her hands over the skirt. “Not like this.”

“You'd look sexy in a potato sack.”

“Since there are no potato sacks in this store, I'm going to have to settle for this dress,” she said.

“I like it, but I don't approve of going without drawers.”

“That's why I wanted to try the thongs.”

“Well, look at these things,” he said, taking the hangers from her hand. “You might as well go without.”

“I thought you'd find it sexy,” she said.

“Yeah, me and a hundred other blokes at the pub. I don't want my girl running around without her knickers. It sends the wrong message.”

Nan took a slow breath as she toyed with the lace at
the neck, her gaze fixed on her reflection. “Do you like the dress?”

“I'd like it better if you wore a T-shirt underneath it.”

“I can't believe you're so prudish,” she said.

He stood up and wrapped his arms around her waist, then brushed a kiss across her lips. “Yes,” he murmured. “I love the dress. I think you look incredible. With or without clothes.” He pressed her back against the mirror, his hands wandering over the curves of her body, the fabric of the dress creating a delicious friction.

“Don't you think the clerk will be able to see that we're both in here?” She pointed to the space beneath the door. “She can see our feet.”

“I'm sure this isn't the first time this changing room has been occupied by two.” He kissed her neck. “I really like this dress.”

“I do, too.”

“Did you buy the scarf in the other store?”

Nan shook her head. “I didn't love it. I want to find something perfect.”

Riley reached into his pocket and took out a small box. “Here. I found something that might do the trick.”

Nan smiled. “What is this?”

“Open it,” he insisted. “It's nothing grand, but it's very Irish.”

She opened the box and pulled away the tissue paper to find a gold ring nestled inside. Nan took it out and looked at it, the design vaguely familiar.

“It's a claddagh,” Riley explained, bending close, his
lips softly touching her cheek. “The heart is for love, the hands for friendship and the crown for loyalty.”

“It's beautiful,” she said, glancing up at him.

“Now, there's a trick to wearing it,” he said. “And I'm not sure how it all goes. I suppose it doesn't really matter. Some people wear it as a wedding or engagement ring, I suppose on their left hand. So wear it on your right.”

She slipped it on the ring finger of her right hand. “It fits perfectly.”

“Well, that was a lucky guess,” he said.

“Thank you,” Nan murmured, holding her hand out to stare at the ring. “I love it. It's exactly what I was looking for.”

“Good,” he said. “I'm glad I was able to help.” He drew a deep breath and nodded. “Well, I'll just be getting out of your way. I'll meet you outside then?”

She nodded. Nan opened the door and Riley looked both ways before stepping out. After she closed the door behind him, she sat down on the low bench and stared at the ring. Her heart fluttered and she tried to take a deep breath, but it was impossible.

What did this mean? Was it custom in Ireland to give a ring to someone you barely knew? Nan was hesitant to attach any sentiment to it beyond friendship, but that didn't stop her from wondering if he had other intentions in giving it to her.

Yes, it was Irish. And maybe that's all it was, Nan thought. But deep inside her, in the furthest corners of her heart, she wanted it to mean more.

R
ILEY SAT ON A STOOL
on the small stage in the pub, plucking out a melody on his guitar. He glanced at the lyrics for the song he'd written, then cursed softly, frustrated with the tune he'd been working on.

Why was it that songs always sounded so much better inside his head than they did once he sang them out loud? There were times when he felt he'd come up with an idea so perfect, there was nothing better. And yet, the moment he tried to work it all out—the lyrics, the melody, the harmony beneath—it wasn't nearly as wonderful as he'd imagined.

This is exactly why artists self-destructed. There was nothing worse than facing your own inadequacies as a musician and he seemed to face them almost daily. But since Nan had arrived he'd felt even more conflicted about his career. For a long time he'd been perfectly satisfied with his life. And now, he saw his carefree, irresponsible existence for what it was—his inability to take life seriously.

Even if he wanted to fall in love with Nan, he
couldn't. What did he have to offer her? All his possessions could fit in the back of his car. He didn't hold a proper job or own a home. He didn't have a college degree or any prospects for a job that offered a regular paycheck. Hell, he wasn't qualified to do anything but tend bar and sing songs.

His mind flashed back to the previous day, to their encounter in the dressing room at Burkes. Riley stifled a groan. Could he have made more of a bollocks of the gift than he had? What had ever possessed him to pull it out and give it to her then? And why pretend it meant nothing beyond friendship when he knew it didn't?

The moment he'd seen the ring in the shop window, he knew it was exactly what he wanted to give Nan. It represented all the feelings he had for her, all wrapped up in a shiny bit of gold. There was friendship first and then loyalty. And now, there was this growing sense of something more. He wasn't sure if it was love, at least not yet. But it felt an awful lot like something serious.

If he knew anything about Nan, he knew she was a practical girl and not the type to believe in love at first sight. They'd met each other on a Monday and today was Saturday. Five days and nights. How was anyone supposed to know how they felt after so short a time?

Hell, he knew how much he wanted her, how her touch drove him wild every time they were together. And how her naked body felt against his as they lost themselves in each other. But that was lust, not love. And he had no doubts at all about those feelings.

After their trip to Bantry yesterday, they'd gone back to the cottage and prepared a dinner of salmon and fresh
vegetables. For dessert, they'd indulged in an apple tart that Nan had bought from a baker at the fair. It was a long, lazy meal followed by a slow, delicious seduction. And in Riley's mind, it was life exactly as it should be lived.

He'd never really thought about falling in love and what it would mean to his life. But he liked evenings alone with Nan. And mornings bringing her coffee. And everything in between. For the first time, he could imagine what married life might be like.

He sighed softly, then turned his attention back to the song he was working on. But a few moments later, the Unholy Trinity walked in the front door, chattering about the recent decision to replace the streetlamps in Ballykirk. They sat down at the bar and Riley set his guitar back on its stand and wandered over to serve them.

“What are you lads up to today?” he asked, dropping a cardboard coaster in front of each of them.

“Streetlamps. What in the name of all that's holy do we need with new lamps?” Dealy asked. “I'm all for modernization, but I happen to remember when they put those lamps in. It was 1968, it was. Over forty damn years ago.”

“They use too much electricity,” Markus said. “They way I hear it, these new lamps will pay for themselves in ten years.”

“Oh, and then we'll need new ones because they'll discover a way to run streetlamps on the lint stuck inside your navel.”

Riley chuckled. “I assume this discussion requires a full pint for each of you.”

They all nodded and Riley turned to pull them each a glass of Guinness. “Say, you lads have been around Ballykirk for a long time. Do you remember a bloke named Carey Findley? Jimmy McPhee says he used to live out on a farm on the way to Glengarriff.”

“Oh, yes,” Johnnie said. “Carey Findley. He's my second cousin twice removed. He lives near Kealkill now. Moved off the farm after his son was drowned.”

Riley swallowed hard. “Drowned?”

“Tragic story, that,” Johnnie said, shaking his head. “He was a wild boy, hard to control. Got in a lot of trouble, he did.”

“How did he die?” Riley asked.

“He was out with some friends on the bay in a small boat and one of the boys fell in. The water was cold and he had trouble and the Findley boy went in after him. They both went under and didn't come up again. After that, Carey couldn't live near the water. Moved to a place just outside Kealkill. Heard his wife died after that. Brokenhearted, she was.”

“Oh, God,” Riley murmured.

“That was years ago. How long, Dealy? Thirty years?”

“Twenty-seven,” Riley said.

“Yes. That's right,” Johnnie said. “It happened a few months after my youngest girl was born. She was sick with a fever and we couldn't go to the wake. He was buried with his mother's family in Glengarriff, if I recall.”

“What's he to you?” Markus asked.

“There was a photo of him and some of his friends on the wall over there. I was just curious.”

“He used to come into the pub a lot. Was quite a charmer, that one. Always looking for a pretty girl.”

“That's what I heard,” Riley said. He drew a deep breath and rested his hands on the bar. “Katie's got a tasty stew going for lunch today. Can I interest you in a bowl or two?”

“Oh, that would be grand,” Dealy said. “And where is the cute little colleen of yours?”

“She's wandering about town,” Riley said as he walked toward the kitchen. “I'm off to find her right now.” When he got inside the kitchen, Riley found Danny sitting at one of the prep tables, reading a newspaper and drinking a mug of coffee. “Have you come to work?” he asked as he handed Katie the order.

“Right after I eat,” his brother said. “I figured you'd want the day to spend with your girl.”

“She's not my girl,” he said. “Not officially.”

“Do you want it to be official?” Danny asked.

“Hell, I don't know. I don't want her to go home. But I'm not sure if that's because I'm falling in love with her or because the sex is crazy good.”

“I'm not hearin' this,” Katie said from behind them both. She put her hands over her ears. “Leave my kitchen with your talk of sin and sex.”

“Katie, girl, you've had three children. Certainly you know about how it all works in the bedroom,” Danny teased.

“Yes, but I'm married and you're not. And I have
three daughters, although thankfully, you'll never get near them. You both need to go to confession.”

Danny picked up his paper and his mug and walked out the back door, Riley following him. They walked around to the front of the pub and sat down on a bench near the front door. “What are you going to do about this girl?” Danny asked.

“I don't know,” Riley said. “I have to find some way to get her to stay.”

“Have you thought about going home with her? It wouldn't be a bad way to see America.”

“Yeah. But there's not a lot I can offer her. You know, women love musicians, but they don't want to marry them, at least not those of us who spend our weekends in pubs filled with drunken girls.”

“You make more than most,” Danny said, “And if you focused on writing songs and producing, you'd make even more. Hell, how much do you need? You've got enough saved to buy a decent house.”

“She deserves more than a decent house. She deserves a grand house and fine clothes and no worries for the rest of her life.”

“Are you even sure that's what she wants?” Danny asked. “She doesn't seem like the type to care about things like that.”

“Isn't that what every woman wants?”

“I think the point of being in love is that you want each other and the rest of it takes care of itself.”

Riley leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. “Wouldn't that be nice if it were that simple.”

“Maybe you should just stop worrying about this
and let it happen,” Danny suggested. “If she doesn't love you, you can't force her to. And you're not sure how you feel.”

“Don't you wonder if you might have missed a chance at something good because you weren't playing attention or you just didn't give it enough time?”

Danny shook his head. “The way I see it, love shouldn't be that fragile that it hinges on simple circumstances. It's tough and resilient and once you find it, it doesn't go away easily. It's always there.”

“Have you ever been in love?”

“No. But that's the way I imagine it to be.”

Riley stood up, shoving his hands into his pockets. “I have to go. You'll keep an eye on the pub? The Unholy Trinity is in there waiting for lunch.”

“Don't jump the gun on this, Riley,” Danny warned. “The last thing you want is to convince her to stay then realize that you don't really love her at all. It would be a cruel thing, that.”

Riley started off down the street. Nan had decided to spend the morning exploring Ballykirk on her own, anxious to visit the church and few of the shops. He'd agreed to meet her for a picnic lunch and a drive along the coast before he had to be back for rehearsal.

If the time was right, he'd try again to convince her to stay. It wasn't that difficult to change a plane ticket, and she still hadn't learned much about her mother. And there were so many sights they hadn't seen. Given the rest of the day, he could probably come up with more reasons for her to delay her departure, but for now, that was enough.

 

T
HE PUB WAS PACKED
with barely enough room to move. Riley had saved a seat for Nan next to Martin, his moody cousin, and the band's sound technician. Nan felt relieved she didn't have to try to watch from the midst of the crush and had a nice little elevated perch from which to see the stage.

She had to wonder where the crowd had come from. Ballykirk was such a small village. But everyone in attendance seemed to be familiar with the band, dancing and shouting out names and singing along with the lyrics.

As the evening went on, the crowd became more and more boisterous and the music more raucous. She'd known Riley as the sweet and sexy guy who spent his nights in her bed and his days driving her all over Ireland. But when he was on stage, she got a chance to see a different side of him.

From the moment he began singing, he had the audience under his spell. Like a lover, he teased and seduced them with his songs, making them want more. He smiled and joked and charmed. And with each song, he built toward a frenzy of energy and music that made her want to jump up and dance. The lively tunes, the playful lyrics, the fiddle and the penny whistle, it was all so much good fun.

Though she knew she was probably imagining things, Riley seemed to be singing every song to her, their gazes meeting across the room. When she waved at him, he'd smile. The band finally left the stage after a rousing rendition of a Pogues song that left the
audience exhausted, yet satisfied. But Riley stayed on stage, sitting down on a stool with an acoustic guitar.

“This is a song for a beautiful lady from America. It's a song I wrote especially for her and this is the first time I'm going to play it. I hope you like it.”

Nan leaned forward, her elbows on the sound table, her eyes fixed on Riley as he spun the tale of a man in love with a beautiful selkie. The way he sang the ballad, it was as if he were singing about the two of them, and their fated relationship.

Nan watched him, amazed at the depth of emotion he conveyed to the audience…and to her. She barely knew Riley, and even though they'd been more intimate than she'd ever been with a man before, she didn't know the tiny details of his life. But, as she watched him, she felt a certain sense of pride in his talent and a fierce attachment.

This was the man who'd chosen to share her bed, this was the man that every girl in the room was lusting after. And tonight, she'd go home with him, she'd take his clothes off and lie naked beside him. A shiver skittered through her body, the anticipation causing an intense physical response.

Riley sang two more songs, both of them sweet love songs, before he nodded to the crowd and stepped off stage, a bottle of beer dangling from his fingers. He headed directly to the control table, but his trip was interrupted again and again by enthusiastic fans—mostly female.

When he finally reached her, he glanced back over his shoulder and took her hand. “Come on, let's get out
of here. I need some air.” She stood and he leaned closer. “I need some you.”

They walked out the front door, into the cool night, and Nan wrapped her arm around his as they strolled aimlessly toward the waterfront. The sounds from the pub faded and when they were finally alone, she spoke. “You were so good. I was just so impressed.”

“That I can sing?”

“No, I knew you could sing. You sang that song for me the first night we were together. And I loved the song about the selkie,” Nan said. “It was so sad. But you have this way with the audience. You draw them in. And they can't help but love you.”

“And you?”

“I love you, too,” Nan said, only realizing the meaning of her words after they'd been said.

There were a few people wandering along the quay and they all recognized Riley and said hello. He found a spot for them to sit, then took a long sip of his beer, staring out at the water, his expression turning serious.